Community members protested on State Street Saturday in support of two men who were killed in July by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
The rally, organized by 805UndocuFund and Indivisible Santa Barbara, was held in response to the shooting deaths of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas, and Johan Sebastian Guerrero, in Maine.
The local protest, near La Cumbre Plaza, was held in conjunction with others across the U.S., a “National Day of Action and Accountability.”
“Everybody deserves the right to be able to live a life,” Anthony Rodriguez, rapid response organizer for the 805UndocuFund, said to the News-Press. “Right now people are not living, they’re just breathing and it’s unfair, especially with the people who are scared to leave their homes.”
In Santa Barbara, community members stood on the corner of State Street and Hitchcock Way from 10 a.m. to noon.
Attendees chanted and held signs, that read, for example, “Stand up for the truth” and “ICE out of 805.”
Christina Pizarro, president of the Santa Barbara Women’s Political Committee, told the News-Press: “We all need to be united and together for justice.”
Both Rodriguez and Pizarro said that the more the community and the U.S. are united, the stronger people will be.
On July 7, ICE shot and killed Salgado Araujo in Houston, Texas and less than a week later, ICE shot and killed Sebastian Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine.
Both were fathers who had raised children in the U.S.
“Their families, their communities, our families, our communities deserve the truth,” Larry Behrendt, member of Santa Barbara Indivisible, said at the vigil. “We gather to mourn, to tell the truth and insist that no government agency is above accountability.”
Behrendt called for independent investigations as well as an end to local collaboration with ICE, calling out the Santa Barbara County Sheriff Department.
After the vigil, many attendees stayed while drivers passed by and continued to honk their horns in support.
Many attendees held premade signs urging for justice, First Amendment rights and transparency. (Viviana Ruiz/Santa Barbara News-Press) 
Community members made their own signs for Saturday’s “National Day of Action and Accountability” where many demand change toward the Trump Administration. (Viviana Ruiz/Santa Barbara News-Press) 
Community members show their signs at Saturday’s peaceful protest. (Viviana Ruiz/Santa Barbara News-Press)
Rodriguez explained ways people can protect themselves.
“Take the time to get training and know [your] rights,” Rodriguez said. “[805UndocuFund] is willing to meet people where they’re at and train at a school, train at a house, train anywhere just to get information out.”
For any concerns, questions or guidance, the 805UndocuFund has a 24-hour hotline on their website.
